Car Rims Size Chart
While a car rims size chart can provide you with plenty of information, the codes used can be difficult to understand. The following guide should help you understand the basic facts about rims and wheels.
How to Read the Tire Code
Tire codes will resemble the following: 205/55 R 16 68 V. The letter P or LT may be set before the tire code given. The LT stands for light truck while the P stands for passenger car. The 205 numbers stands for the width of the tire.
The measurement is in millimeters. The number 55 stands for aspect ratio. The aspect ratio is equivalent to the sidewall height of the tires. This is expressed in percent multiplied using the width. In this case it is 55% of 205 mm. That will register a figure of 112.75 mm.
Size and Construction
Other information that a car rims size chart may show is the tire arrangement. This is denoted by the letter R (radial). The other marking you may see is the letter B. It is called the bias ply.
However this sign is rarely seen in automobiles nowadays. The 16” denotes the diameter of the tier hole. This also denotes the rim size that will work with it.
Speed and Load Rating
The final two digits (in this case 68) are about the load rating. These are related to the load in lbs. You will see this in a load rating chart. The final letter refers to the speed rating. The further the alphabet letter is, the faster the tire is (i.e. B is faster than A, D is faster than C and so on). A V on the tires means it is very fast.
Other Information
Most cars today can handle different tire widths, but this is not always the case. Check the car manual to be sure. As a rule, the bigger the tire width, the better the performance will be. However, the wider tire can be more costly. They can also affect the fuel efficiency.
The reason is it comes into contact with the road. The same holds true for the diameter. The greater the diameter, the easier it will be to handle. But the extra performance will come at a price.
As you can see, it is easy to know what those letters and numbers signify. By understanding what they mean, you will never go wrong when reading those car rims size charts.